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The Quest to Understand the Pioneer Anomaly

Michael Martin Nieto
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Abstract

The Pioneer 10/11 missions, launched in 1972 and 1973, and their navigation are reviewed. Beginning in about 1980 an unmodeled force of ~ 8 x 10^{-8} cm/s^2 appeared in the tracking data, it later being verified. The cause remains unknown, although radiant heat remains a likely origin. A set of efforts to find the solution are underway: a) analyzing in detail all available data, b) using data from the New Horizons mission, and c) considering an ESA dedicated mission.

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Michael Martin Nieto. 2007-02-02. The Quest to Understand the Pioneer Anomaly. https://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0702017

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